Air Force Nursing Duty Stations

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Hello, 

I like to say thank you for everyone who helped me on here to where Im at now. I've talked to my healthcare recruiter, got my job AFSC 46N3J Emergency/trauma nurse, and I just passed MEPS. I now have interviews and just getting ready before Jan 15 2021. 

One of the things I need to do now is to compile a list of duty stations I would like to go to. My main goals in any duty station is to get training and to be deployed. I am focused to do all l can to be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. (im a 32m, single, no kids)

So far I have" 

CONUS (US)

1. Nellis (I heard the air force cross trains at the University Medical Center hospital that focuses in trauma, since it was the only hospital handing all the victims in the Vegas shooting)

2. JB Sam Huston (because its the medical focus in the military for army, navy, Air Force) 

3. Travis AFB (its the largest inpatient hospital in the nation)

4. Wright Patterson 

5. Eglin

6. Keesler

ABROAD 

1. Osan Korea (besucase they are always in a constant state of tension and conflict)

2. Ramstein (largest NATO base, and receives casualties from Iraq/Afghanistan)

3. Lakenheath RAF England 

4. yokota Japan 

5. Masawa Japan 

What do you guys think? I have no idea about any of these bases, so im just going to each base website and reading up what units are out there and what they are about. But any help, experience, or advice is greatly appreciated. 

Thank you

Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

Everybody deploys eventually.  Active duty AF nurses generally do a 6 months on 12 months off cycle.  You can express your interest, but they really do just randomly assign people with the needed skills when jobs come out.  All deployment locations are pretty much joint facilities with multiple branches represented.  There's a lot of waiting around for stuff to happen on a deployment.  You're stuck wherever they send you busy or not.

I see. No one told me that. But good to know. Thank you. 

Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

Yeah you don't necessarily go every cycle, but it is a possibility.  I had an ICU deployment to Afghanistan where we saw about a half-dozen patients a week...maybe half of them trauma.  I had a recent COVID "deployment" where they stuck us in a civilian hospital for a month.

I see, so the luck of the draw I guess. How was that deployment? And yes, my hospital has been getting some nurses from Travis AFB for a time too. 

Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

It's like a college dorm situation...bunk beds with 4 to a room and shared hall bathrooms.  There's not much to do but eat, sleep, gym, and work.   You're in the middle of nowhere and confined to a relatively small fenced compound.  It's pretty safe but the base would attacked a couple times a month by rockets or a car comb.  Most times no one would get hurt.  

sounds like that was an experience none the less. Im sure when you did go to work, it was more meaningful since you are more connected with whats happening 

Specializes in Oceanfront Living.
On 11/10/2020 at 10:41 PM, aferg002 said:

Good to know. Thank you for that. I had no idea. I guess I just had an over idealist view of things. Would you think Sam Huston would be a great duty station to start out at for their ER trauma nursing? Or does it really not matter? Because as you mentioned, the actual civilian medical center training is only going to be a few weeks instead of being there for a long time. And thank you for mentioning to me to pick for the location rather than the acuity of it all. 

 

Living in San Antonio is great!  The climate is nice and the cultural variety is wonderful.  I highly recommend it.

 I would skip Keesler.  My SIL is currently assigned there and while it used to have a big medical center it is not the same. However, the prices are low and the seafood is good in the area.

Best of luck!

 

 

 

Thank you so much for the input, I appreciate the introduction to San Antonio and the warning about Keesler! 

Specializes in Emergency Nursing.
On 11/17/2020 at 4:53 PM, aferg002 said:

Thank you so much for the input, I appreciate the introduction to San Antonio and the warning about Keesler! 

@aferg002 where did you end up going? I am headed to Wright-Patt for ER in a couple of months

So.........I’m not going. 
 

After completing MEPS in October, and going through 4 healthcare recruiters, somehow I was not able to get an interview with anyone. 
 

im pretty pissed off on how it was handled. I did everything they asked, submitted everything, passed everything. I have 3 years nursing experience (1.5 in a level 1 trauma) and for some reason I wasn’t scheduled for an interview. 
 

I just don’t know what to say. 
 

I still want to serve. I would drop everything now to be where you guys are at, but I was just forgotten. And I was calling my recruiters every week for updates and all to. I just don’t know. 
 

but I wish you the best of luck there, let me how it goes and I hope I can get an interview for the next board. Fingers crossed 

13 hours ago, aferg002 said:

So.........I’m not going. 
 

After completing MEPS in October, and going through 4 healthcare recruiters, somehow I was not able to get an interview with anyone. 
  

im pretty pissed off on how it was handled. I did everything they asked, submitted everything, passed everything. I have 3 years nursing experience (1.5 in a level 1 trauma) and for some reason I wasn’t scheduled for an interview. 
  

I just don’t know what to say. 
 

I still want to serve. I would drop everything now to be where you guys are at, but I was just forgotten. And I was calling my recruiters every week for updates and all to. I just don’t know. 
 

but I wish you the best of luck there, let me how it goes and I hope I can get an interview for the next board. Fingers crossed 

Stay on it. Coming from someone who's gone through the whole process to have one service stop picking up NPs, spend 8 months of the next recruiter to drop the ball, then when I get board selected have the SG drop me despite multiple specialists ruling out a diagnosis, forcing unnecessary medical procedures to disprove a diagnosis, that only made on clinical presentation in the first place, I maintain anything is plausible.  

3 minutes ago, djmatte said:

Stay on it. Coming from someone who's gone through the whole process to have one service stop picking up NPs, spend 8 months of the next recruiter to drop the ball, then when I get board selected have the SG drop me despite multiple specialists ruling out a diagnosis, forcing unnecessary medical procedures to disprove a diagnosis, that only made on clinical presentation in the first place, I maintain anything is plausible.  

I appreciate it. And I don't understand why the process has to be like this if it were standardized. Im glad that you were able to get in. I just have a jaded view on things. I remain hopeful but have no expectations. I am going to call my recruiter tomorrow, but Im pretty sure I will be late and miss everything. With that in mind, Im hoping I can try to apply to the next board and see how far I can go with that. Im still motivated, on my own account, so they won't get rid of me yet. 

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